A captured Ukrainian sailors speaks with his lawyer in a courtroom in Simferopol, Crimea, on Nov. 27. A Crimean court has ordered one of the Ukrainian seamen captured by Russia be held in custody for the next two months. (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Liberal MPs on the House defence committee voted not to call on the Russian ambassador to answer for Russia’s aggression toward its neighbours, but said they might do so in future.

Conservative MP Cheryl Gallant tabled a motion at the Tuesday meeting that would compel the defence committee to invite Alexander Darchiev, the Russian ambassador to Canada, to answer questions about Russia’s offensives in former Soviet states.

Darchiev’s counterparts from Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine joined the committee on Tuesday to share their countries’ experience in dealing with Russian aggressions.

The Liberals on the committee requested a brief recess to discuss the motion before Liberal MP Sven Spengemann said they needed more time to discuss the “ramifications” of the motion, after which those in government voted to adjourn debate of the motion. Spengemann told iPolitics afterward that the committee would discuss the motion further at a later time.

According to the committee, the Russian ambassador has joined them for a meeting before, after Russian planes were intercepted in Canadian air space.

“This is much more grave. … A report on having the representatives (of Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine) here doesn’t carry as much weight as doing full questioning (of the Russian ambassador) and getting to the bottom of the issue,” Gallant said.

Ambassadors from Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine joined the committee just over a week after Russian naval boats crashed into, fired on, and captured Ukrainian vessels and personnel that were attempting a routine pass through the Kerch Strait into waters that are accessed by both countries.

Andriy Shevchenko, Ukraine’s ambassador to Canada, said things haven’t improved since the ships were seized.

“There are no good news on the sailors,” he said. “What we know (at) the moment is that they are in Moscow and they been taken to the infamous Lefortovo prison. (These) are all signs that Russian leadership wants to make this a demonstrative criminal case.”

Shevchenko said Ukraine plans to pursue legal action of its own against the Russian officials responsible for the sailors’ capture.

Global Affairs Canada issued a statement condemning Russia’s actions after the incident last week. Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said she spoke with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin to “(assure) him of Canada’s unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty.” The G7 issued a similar statement shortly after.

Ala Beleavschi, the Republic of Moldova’s ambassador to Canada, and Konstantin Kavtaradze, the Republic of Georgia’s ambassador to Canada, also told the committee about their countries’ experiences facing Russian hostility in the region.

Kavtaradze said Russia uses conflicts as “tools” to enhance their control of the region, while Beleavschi said Russian forces carry out near-daily military exercises in the part of Moldova which they occupy.

Asked by Liberal MP Julie Dzerowicz what they think Russia is trying to accomplish through its aggressions, Shevchenko, Beleavschi and Kavtaradze agreed that Russia is trying to expand its influence through any means possible.

“Russia wants to destabilize the international order,” Shevchenko said. “They will try to interfere with the elections in the Western countries that they’re concerned about. So it’s not just about Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, for me. It’s obviously about Canada, as well.”

The ambassadors asked Canada to expand sanctions on Russia, as well as extend the mandate of Operation Unifier, which is the Canadian Armed Forces’ training mission for Ukraine’s forces. Since the start of Unifier in September 2015, Canada’s forces have trained more than 10,000 Ukrainian troops.

iPolitics asked a spokesperson for Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan whether the government would consider extending Unifier and was provided with this statement: “Canada’s support for Ukraine is unwavering. We will always look at what type of support is needed and we are currently reviewing our support to Ukraine through Operation Unifier.”